Melt 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) of unsalted butter.  Pour into a 13×9 inch pan.

Mix 1 cup of flour, 1 cup of sugar and 1 cup of milk with a teaspoon of vanilla flavoring/extract.  When thoroughly mixed, dump on top of butter.  Do not stir.

Dump a 32 ounce can of pie filling of your choice on top of the flour mixture.  Do not stir.

Bake in oven for about 40 minutes or until lightly browned crust.  The flour mixture rises up through the fruit filling.

Serve warm with ice cream or whipped cream.

I pulled the washing machine out, unhooked the rubber tubing to the back where the water runs into the machine and sure enough, there was a filter.  Oh my gosh at the gunk.  I used a q-tip to remove some of it.  I also squirted water in the hole and held a bowl under the area for the dirt to drip out.

My washing machine fills quickly now and my laundry time has been cut in half.  I should have done that years ago.  I kept thinking something was wrong but I assumed my machine was dying on me.  lol

I have had pain in my lower abdomen for years on and off.  I have been to my doctors office many times with no solution.  I knew I was often constipated and figured that had to be part of the tummy problems.

My niece, Kathi, had given her son  probiotics (7 years old, with loose stools) for his stomach problems and kept telling me what a difference it has made for him.  Then I heard a doctor on PBS talking about probiotics and the benefits.

Well, I am one of those people that believes nothing is a coincidence.   So I listened carefully as she explained how our bodies stop producing as much “friendly bacteria” as we get past 50 years of age.  Also, antibiotics that kill off the bad bacteria also kill off the friendly bacteria (at any age).   She said a lot more but I don’t want to misquote her or try to explain things I am not qualified to explain.  I wish I could remember her name.

Anyway, this doctor said get a probiotic that has at least 10 strains of bacteria, the ones that start with B’s and L’s.  She also said it should have at least 15 billion cells and be enteric (means it won’t be destroyed in the stomach by the acids but will actually get to the gut to do it’s job).

I went online and bought a 16 strain, 32 billion cell, vegetarian enteric probiotic and started taking two a day.  It has been well over month, more like six weeks, and my stomach problems no longer exist and I have not been constipated one time.  In fact, my digestive tract is working so well that I seldom ever miss a day.

I know that is rather personal information but gosh, getting older is tough.  The aches and pains, the medical problems that creep up on you (I will be having a hip replacement in the near future), and just not feeling the strength to do all that you want to do.   I just wanted to share with anyone that wants to listen, probiotics has made my life better.  I actually think I have more energy.

This is my testimony and I am not a doctor.  I did not see anywhere any precautions or warnings about taking probiotics.  I saw no side effects written anywhere either.   I hate taking pills and I have never been good at making myself even take vitamins.  But, I NEVER forget to take the probiotics because it has made a dramatic change in my life.  One less pain in my life…it rocks.

I buy socks in packs of 6, I think.  So the second sock with no hole goes back into the sock drawer to match up with another sock that will someday also have a hole.   I could just sew up the hole but depending on where it is, it can be uncomfortable.  Not much of a seamstress anyway.

So I took the clean sock with a hole and put it on my hand and sprayed a little furniture polish and cleaned my living room furniture.  It worked great.   Now you have the option to toss it in the trash or rewash it and use it again.

I have a little bucket under the kitchen sink that I keep old stained t-shirts that I have cut into pieces for cleaning.   So now I throw my old socks in there, too.   Works for me.

So a couple of tips that you might or might not know:

First, put a time line for your dieting.  Anyone can diet for two weeks but when you say I am going to diet until I lose 10 pounds, it is too indefinite.

Second, if I wanted to lose 20 pounds or more, I found dieting Monday thru Friday and then giving myself a break on the weekend encouraged me to be better during the week.  So on the weekend, I might decide to have a slice of toast with my breakfast.  Maybe I would have a baked potato with a small amount of butter at dinner.   Or maybe you crave chocolate.   Have a piece or two only.  Feeling deprived only makes you want to quit the diet sooner.

Thirdly, I have found if I am craving something, I will eat all kinds of other foods trying to get rid of the craving and end up eating way too much.  So if I am craving potato chips, I just eat a couple.  Or if it is chocolate, I eat two Hershey kisses.  That will take care of the craving and I will stop eating everything I see that I think will satisfy my craving.  I also heard on Dr. Oz that niacin helps with cravings.  I haven’t tried that though.   I bought some but haven’t tried it.  I have awful sugar cravings.  My husband says I am a sugar addict.  I am sure I am.

Fourth, I think the buddy system definitely helps.  If you don’t have someone to diet with, at least have someone who is willing to be your shoulder to cry on or someone to confide in.  Look for a cheerleader type personality, not a critical person.

Fifth, before starting your diet, jump start your diet by cutting out or reducing your bread or pastries or sodas or sugars.   If you are needing to lose a few pounds, you can do it with this step alone.  My nephew lost 10 lbs in a month by just cutting out sodas.

Sixth, if you don’t have the crap in your house, you won’t eat it.  So be a good shopper and don’t bring things into the house that will tempt you.

Seventh, take a walk when you feel like you are starving and need to eat something.  Take a bottle of water with you and just get your mind on something other than eating.   A lot of time, you are just thirsty instead of hungry.

Weight Watchers helped me lose twenty pounds in about 3 months.  I used the point system and I could eat anything I wanted as long as I didn’t go over the  points I was allowed each day.  The points are figured based on fiber and fat, if I remember correctly.  It is a math equation so you can figure it out at the grocery store or they have a hand held chart that is small and can be cared in your purse.

Of course, the problem with any diet is that you have to continue your diet in order to keep the weight off.  That’s why eating really healthy during the week and then giving yourself some leeway on the weekend could help you keep the weight off.

And of course, your age really makes a difference in trying to lose weight.  Your metabolism has slowed down but so has your activity level.  And for me, food tastes better than ever.  I would rather eat my cooking than eating out.

Well, I hope some of this helps you if you are starting the new year off with a weight loss resolution.

Instead of just sitting the jar on a shelf in his work area, I cut some 2×4s that fit between the studs in the shed.  Before attaching the boards to the studs, I attached the lids to the bottom of the 2×4s.   I put a screw in the middle of the lid (on the inside of the lid).  Once I put two or three on the board, I then screwed/nailed the 2×4 between the studs.  So you are basically creating shelves but the jars hang from the bottom of the shelves.    Leave enough space between the shelves so you can screw and unscrew the bottom part of the jar.

Also, the mayo jars are great for storing food that you might want to refrigerate or even take to someone’s house or for packing in your lunch.   I save leftover soups and chili in the containers.

I told you previously how I made a moat around my dog’s food dish and put dish detergent in the water of the outer bowl to keep the ants out of the food.  Well, the problem with that was the dish detergent was slippery and the dish kept moving to the side of the outer pan and then the ants could crawl into the dog food.  I tried adding glass cleaner to the water instead.  I have done this now for over a week and no ants and no sliding bowls.

I was lying in bed the other night and I had one ant bite on my thumb knuckle that was hurting/stinging.  I wasn’t even sure it was an ant bite but it was bothering me so much, I couldn’t fall asleep.

I went to the medicine cabinet and saw some pain relief, anesthetic gel and I figured if it can numb a tooth ache, it was worth a try.  I applied a small film on the knuckle and it only took a few minutes and it felt better.  I don’t know if it actually numbs it, but I did fall asleep right away.

Now I am not a doctor and I am not recommending doing this for everything but it did work for me.  There was no open wound.  And if you can put it in your mouth, it seemed safe enough.   I guess when you are desperate, you seek out unconventional ways to relieve your pain.  I just try to be resourceful of the things I have in my house.